Back to school ...

This morning on Facebook, I see that all of my friends are talking about how their kids are starting their first day of school this morning. Some posted pictures... others just posted their status saying it was the first day of school. My neighborhood seems very quiet today ...

I remember how exciting the first day of school was! You had to have that 'perfect' outfit and the 'right' book bag. I remember I could barely sleep the night before! It makes me excited to even think of Julianna going to her first day of school one day... I can picture Brian and I bringing her and not wanting to leave her!

There was so much excitement on the first day back to school ...

• Racing to the bus stop very early so you didn't miss the bus that ended up never coming on time anyway
  
• Finding out who your teachers were- and are they the 'cool' teachers or the 'strict' & 'mean' teachers?
  
• The awkwardness of being back at school and having to use your mind again
  
• Finding out who was in your homeroom
• How can I see my friends during the day? Are they in my classes or do I pass them in the hall?
• Finding out who was in your classes
• Where your locker was and whose locker was next to yours?!
• Seeing what new clothes everyone else was wearing
• Who was driving this year? (in highschool)
  
• Who moved away or went to private school and didn't return this year.
• Hearing about your friend's summer vacations
• Getting caught up on all the gossip
  
• Who was hanging with the popular group of kids this year?
  
• Sweating your butts off in your new outfit in the classrooms because there was no air conditioning and it's still hot through the end of September! (Guess the property taxes our parents were swindled out of in NJ wasn't enough to buy a $100 AC unit in each class window!! haha!) - this may have changed and the kids may have AC now but back then, it got REALLY hot in the beginning of the year and at the end of the school year.
• Who the new students were and sizing them up to see if you could be friends
• Who is boyfriend & girlfriend ... and who broke up over the summmer
  
• Hoping the cafeteria will have something other than "Mystery Meat" for lunch this year
  

I am sure many things have changed...

I know kids now have to have a large list of specific supplies they are responsible to buy & bring with them... most kids have cellphones now (ugh!)... some towns do not bus their kids (they have to walk!)... there is overcrowding in the classrooms and understaffing in most of the schools (this is what I hear from other parents)... you now have to 'pay to play' for after-school activities like sports & clubs that used to be free in my day...

Since I do not have any children in school, I am not aware of other things that have changed over the years... I can only imagine.

What else has changed since 'we' were in school??
Anyone care to comment that has kids in school now?


Here are some cute extras - Enjoy.

Reflections from Summer 2010

Well... as the summer comes to and end - I can't help but think about how fabulous my summer was. This may have been the best summer of my entire life actually!

To start the summer off... Our beautiful daughter Julianna was born on May 23rd. She changed our lives in ways that we never could have imagined. I was off from work to care for her, for 14 weeks until this past Monday... and enjoyed every minute of it.

This is what I spent my summer doing ...
(Sounds like a back to school essay, huh?)

Visiting - Brian and I visited friends and family on the weekends - Everyone got to meet & spend quality time with Julianna. She has seen Grandma and Grandpa Sasso & Fillmore a few times. I brought Julianna to see her Nana (my mother) at least once a week. Julianna also met her grandfather (my father) in July that lives in New Hampshire. She also met her Great-Grandma Claire!! And we hope to have her meet her Great-Grandma Banek in the fall. I only wish my Nana (my mother's mother) could be here to meet Julianna. She passed away 2 years ago. But I know somewhere, somehow, she knew Julianna the minute she was born.... and is going to watch over her forever!

Friends - A good friend of mine, Nicole, had her baby boy (Jake) 3 weeks after Julianna was born... and we made a 'baby' date once a week where we went to the mall & walked, had lunch, went to the park... and talked "New baby" and "New Mom" stuff. It was fun!
Another good friend of mine is currently pregnant, and we hung out together this summer alot and talked new baby stuff too! I can now truly appreciate & absorb all the "kid" conversations that I previously found not so interesting pre-julianna - LOL! I also got to talk to so many of my friends with kids and pick their brains too!

Swimmers - Julianna and I spent time with some of my friends ... We went to the Piccatinny pool, the Newton Pool, the Hackettstown pool ... and Club Sasso (inlaw's pool)
Julianna went in the water with me - she liked it a lot. She looked so cute with her bathing suit & sunhat on (and of course sunblock!) ... She also got to wear her first "Swimmie" diapers, which I am told by the other mothers that they don't work and they don't even hold the pee in - they are only made to hold in the Poop. Great. So at least it's official, when you go in a pool with other small kids swimming around, you are swimming in their pee.

Good Times - Brian, Julianna and I spent some quality family time together as well. We went to the Sussex county state fair and many other fun places. I wish Brian could have had off from his job for a few more weeks... He only had about a week of vacation time - and we had visitors during that time, so it was never really just the 3 of us. I wish we could have had more time together alone before he went back to work.
There should be a law where the father gets "Paid paternity leave" from the state just like the mother does. I know he could have taken baby bonding time and it would have been paid but it's not the same as a true "Paternity" leave (like maternity leave). No, the man doesn't give birth, but I know he would have loved to have been home to experience the first few weeks of Julianna's life (with me) without having to worry about working. Maybe one day this will become something that is as normal as Maternity Leave is to the woman.

Baby Bonding time (NJ law) - Let me tell you, thank goodness for Baby Bonding paid time off. If it wasn't for that, I would have been back to work after 8 weeks. No way was I ready to return to work after 8 weeks! I was just getting my normal life & routine down ... and starting to have fun with Julianna. So the Baby Bonding time allows you an additional 6 weeks of "continuous" paid leave. (continuous my ass! I am still waiting on a check and I am back to work!).

It really was the best summer of my entire life and I will never forget it. I look forward to all the fun times I have ahead with my beautiful daughter and my incredible husband...